Dr. Erin Hascup, director of the Dale and Deborah Smith Center for Alzheimer's Research and Treatment, sat down with NPR Illinois' Vanessa Ferguson to discuss the latest in Alzheimer's disease on the program, Community Voices.

Dr. Erin Hascup, director of the Dale and Deborah Smith Center for Alzheimer's Research and Treatment, sat down with NPR Illinois' Vanessa Ferguson to discuss the latest in Alzheimer's disease on the program, Community Voices.

Dr. Erin Hascup, director of the Dale and Deborah Smith Center for Alzheimer's Research and Treatment, sat down with NPR Illinois' Vanessa Ferguson to discuss the latest in Alzheimer's disease on the program, Community Voices.

What brought you to SIU Medicine? I was born in Springfield and spent all of my childhood here, leaving only to go to college, then medical and graduate school. I always knew I wanted to return home eventually. I am fortunate that we have an excellent academic medical program as well as an outstanding hospital system in my hometown. It was an easy decision to move back home when I finished my training to establish my career. Why did you choose neurology as a focus? I was always fascinated with infectious disease stories when I was young, and this led me to start research with Dr. Linda Toth

A pharmacology and neuroscience student at SIU School of Medicine, Jesse Britz, along with Shelley Tischkau, PhD, and the Smith Alzheimer's Center Hascup Labs , recently researched the link between Alzheimer's and circadian rhythm (the body's 24-hour internal clock). Britz, who is from Divernon, earned his PhD this past December. Tell us about your recent research. The whole focus of the project started because sleep/wake cycles are heavily disrupted in Alzheimer’s. For a long time it’s been looked at as a symptom – sundowning is a term that is normally used. People in late-stage Alzheimer’s

The Department of Population Science and Policy (PSP), in collaboration with University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, SIU Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, SIU Medicine Center for Rural Health and Social Service Development and the Illinois Department of Public Health, convened a summit of 50 influential stakeholders across various sectors such as government, health care, public health, philanthropy and academia to share perspectives on the state of rural health in Illinois. The summit’s activities were designed to spark conversation on major challenges and successful

The Department of Population Science and Policy (PSP), in collaboration with University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, SIU Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, SIU Medicine Center for Rural Health and Social Service Development and the Illinois Department of Public Health, convened a summit of 50 influential stakeholders across various sectors such as government, health care, public health, philanthropy and academia to share perspectives on the state of rural health in Illinois. The summit’s activities were designed to spark conversation on major challenges and successful

The Department of Population Science and Policy (PSP), in collaboration with University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, SIU Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, SIU Medicine Center for Rural Health and Social Service Development and the Illinois Department of Public Health, convened a summit of 50 influential stakeholders across various sectors such as government, health care, public health, philanthropy and academia to share perspectives on the state of rural health in Illinois. The summit’s activities were designed to spark conversation on major challenges and successful

Here’s a look at the Top 5 education innovations that have put SIU at the forefront of medical education worldwide. SIU School of Medicine has been innovative from day one, striving to find better ways to educate medical students. In 1976, it was the first U.S. medical school to publish curricular objectives, the first time in the history of medical education that the entire curriculum was identified through learning objectives. A few years later, problem-based learning (PBL) and standardized patients (SP) made SIU School of Medicine world-renowned. These two principles of medicine have been

Here’s a look at the Top 5 education innovations that have put SIU at the forefront of medical education worldwide. SIU School of Medicine has been innovative from day one, striving to find better ways to educate medical students. In 1976, it was the first U.S. medical school to publish curricular objectives, the first time in the history of medical education that the entire curriculum was identified through learning objectives. A few years later, problem-based learning (PBL) and standardized patients (SP) made SIU School of Medicine world-renowned. These two principles of medicine have been